Peace Corps Master's International in Public Health

The Peace Corps Master’s International (MI) program is a partnership
between the Peace Corps and selected universities. This
partnership enables students to integrate a Peace Corps Volunteer
experience into a master’s degree program, thereby enriching and
enhancing each experience.

Admission to the
Program

If interested, please contact Dr. Paige Hornsby at pph8c@virginia.edu for more
information.

Students apply to the MPH program first. Once accepted, they
then apply to the Peace Corps. They begin MPH course work while
their Peace Corps application is being processed. MI-MPH students at UVa spend one academic year (two
semesters) completing MPH course work prior to serving in the Peace
Corps (27 months). After Peace Corps service, they return to UVa
to complete one more semester of course work and obtain their MPH
degree.

Curriculum

MI-MPH students enroll in the same courses as other MPH
students. In addition, the Peace Corps experience is integrated
into the students’ academic program as follows:

MPH-MI students take Global Health Policy and Practice (PHS 7184)
and/or Global Health Research Methodologies (PHS 7185) and Qualitative
Methods in Community and Global Health (PHS 7015) in the academic year
prior to Peace Corps service;

MPH-MI students attend preparatory meetings with program faculty in
the academic year prior to Peace Corps service; and

MPH-MI students’ culminating experience projects are completed
after Peace Corps service and are based on their Peace Corps
experience.